


Five Times Tony Called Peter his Son, and the One Time he Couldn't

by TheDumbestAvenger



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Captain America: Civil War (Movie), F/M, Father-Son Relationship, Not A Fix-It, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Post-Spider-Man: Homecoming, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Has A Heart, a worse it?, not even close
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-10
Updated: 2020-07-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:15:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25184668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDumbestAvenger/pseuds/TheDumbestAvenger
Summary: Tony has a habit of letting his mouth run off before his brain has time to vet the words coming out, sometimes it gets him in sticky situations, and sometimes Peter wishes for those situations once again.
Relationships: James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark, Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 8
Kudos: 63





	Five Times Tony Called Peter his Son, and the One Time he Couldn't

**Author's Note:**

> Me writing this whole thing last night and only vaguely checking it in the morning? It's more likely that you'd think.

** I. **

“Give me some feedback, anything you think of.” Tony followed Rhodey alongside the walking bars as the latter tested out his new leg braces. “Shock absorption, lateral movement. Cup holder?” 

There it was, Tony’s go-to move. Make a joke rather than face the painful conversation, which, in this case, revolved around crippling guilt. Guilt for the Accords, guilt that his best friend was paralysed from the waist down, guilt that most of his other friends were locked up in some insane superhero prison. Guilt for the kid that he’d dragged in to clean up his mess. All of it because of him. 

Still, feeling the guilt was easier than facing the betrayal.

“You may wanna think about putting some AC down there-” The end of Rhodey’s sentence was lost as he tripped and hit the ground.

Tony lunged forward but was too slow to catch him - an irony which was not lost on him. Tony knelt beside Rhodey as he tried to push himself upright again. “Let’s go. I’ll give you a hand.” He reached for Rhodey’s shoulder, but the other man batted his hand away.

“No. Don’t help me. I’ve got this.” Rhodey manoeuvred onto his side, shifting into to somewhat of a sitting position beside Tony.

Tony wanted nothing more than to help. To swoop in, as he always did, and make everything better. But he had a lousy track record when it came to the results, Ultron and the Accords just to name the most recent attempts to ‘help’. So he sat back on his heels, waited.

Once Rhodey was more comfortable, he started to talk again. “One hundred and thirty-eight. That’s how many combat missions I’ve flown Tony. Every one of them could have been my last, but I flew them.”

_ Great. _ Tony thought.  _ The one I ask you to fly with me and look at the result… _

“I flew them because the fight needed to be fought. It’s the same with these Accords, I signed because it was the right thing to do. And yeah, this is a bad beat. But it hasn’t changed my mind.” Rhodey paused, looking into Tony’s eyes as if weighing up a decision. “Look, I gotta ask-”

“For AC? Yep, noted. I’ll get right on it.”

“No,” Rhodey said before Tony could derail the conversation, as he was so good at doing. “I get that this isn’t the best time, and you’ve got a lot going on, but that kid? Where’d you find him? Who is he?”

“The Spiderling? Illegitimate son from back in the old days.”

The joke fell flat. 

“Tony,” Rhodey’s voice held no judgement, no accusations, just an abundance of concern for his friend. 

Tony knew he didn’t deserve it, what he deserved  _ was _ judgement and accusations. He deserved to be yelled at for his wrongdoings in the last few days, at least, to be disowned by his friends and left in this giant facility alone. One final reminder of how royally he’d screwed up one good thing he had left.

“Queens,” Tony said simply. “He’s just a kid from Queens. You’ve seen the videos of him catching cars with his bare hands?”

“Pretty sure everyone in New York has.”

“I had FRIDAY track Spider-Man back to an apartment and, well… by the time a  _ kid _ turned up, it was too late to back down. I should have, I  _ should _ have just made an excuse and left. But Ross gave me that deadline and I was out of ideas. I panicked.”

“Stop, Tony,” Rhodey put a hand on Tony’s shoulder and met his eyes. “Don’t do that. Don’t blame yourself. Everything about this situation is shitty, you were trying to make it right. There’s no way you could have known.”

“I’m supposed to be better. To  _ do _ better. But I can only manage worse.” He gestured, tears welling in his eyes, at Rhodey’s legs.

“You carry the weight of the world on your shoulders, but know that I’m right here beside you to share it, right? ‘Cause I feel like you need to hear that.”

Tony didn’t reply, but a smile turned up the corners of his mouth. Instead, he offered Rhodey his hand and helped him to his feet, one hand lingering on his shoulder until he was sure Rhodey was steady. “I’m going to protect the kid, Ross isn’t getting his grubby little hands anywhere near him. I hate to ask for help right now, but I may need an extra set of hands.”

“I’ll trade you a pair of hands for a pair of legs,” Rhodey chuckled.

A knock at the window drew both their attention. An elderly FedEx man stood clutching a package close to his face. “Are you Tony Stank?”

“Yes, this is Tony Stank,” Rhodey laughed. “You’re in the right place. Thank you for that!” He grinned at Tony. “Never dropping that, by the way. Table for one, Mr Stank. Please by the bathroom.” 

Rhodey’s laugh was so infectious Tony couldn’t help but join in. For the first time in days, Tony thought that maybe, somehow, things might just start to look up. So what if he now had a kid to look out for, how difficult could it possibly be?

** II. **

Very, it turned out. Tony was verging on using the word impossible. Peter seemed to be a magnet for trouble and, up until now, Tony had been able to deal with it. The kid could kick a man across a room with breaking a sweat for god’s sake, stopping a mugger and helping an elderly lady with directions Tony could handle.

But when Chitauri weapons began sprouting up around the city, and Peter was dropped into the East River by some guy in a bird costume, Tony’s general stress level jumped up. Then again after the ferry incident.

Tony felt awful taking away Peter’s suit, it was a knee jerk reaction to a bad situation that he regretted almost instantly. He was going to give it back, no doubt about it, maybe just… after the FBI had dealt with the weapons problem, and the biggest threat to Peter was his own awkward flirting with that Liz he was always talking about.

What he didn’t expect was for Peter to don his trusty red and blue onesie and takedown Tony’s cargo plane moving equipment from the Avengers Tower to the new facility upstate. So when he found himself sitting in May’s apartment later that night - or maybe the early hours of the morning - Tony was kind of at a loss.

Tony couldn’t seem to lift his head from his hands, unball his fists from his hair, though whether it was from guilt, shame, regret, or a tasty cocktail of all three, Tony wasn’t sure. It took May bringing hot cocoa from the kitchen for him to finally move.

The kid was sleeping off his injuries - Tony was sure to have him checked over at the Avengers Facility first - in his bedroom down the hall, so May kept her voice to a whisper. “Here, Peter always likes cocoa after a hard day.”

“Peter’s a fifteen-year-old kid.” Tony still took the cup gratefully, holding it in both hands.

“Never too old for cocoa.” May sat on the sofa beside him and took a long sip of her own drink. “I can’t believe I didn’t know he was Spider-Man. Not even a clue.” She let out a disbelieving laugh. “I told him if he ever sees anything like the bank robbery to run the other way. I knew he was out all of the time, just thought he was studying not fighting crime.”

“Hey, kids hide things from their parents. And their aunts.” He added quickly. “Me taking him to Germany probably didn’t help, sorry about that.” He took a sip of his drink, burning his tongue on the still too hot liquid as he collected his thoughts. “I’ve known him what, four months now? I probably should’ve clued you in, or at least told the kid too.”

“He wouldn’t have told me anyway, thinks he’s got to protect me.”

“Yeah, pretty sure he has some kind of complex about that.” Tony’s head ended up in his hand again, just the one free one this time. “I feel like this is all my fault.”

“Hey,” May said sternly. “If I’m not allowed to wallow in guilt, neither are you.

Tony straightened up, met May’s eye, and chuckled, shaking his head. “You didn’t know. I did, and I took away his suit, his protection, which I’m sure is the worst play I’ve made for a long time - and I broke up the Avengers. He’s not even my son, but I feel responsible for him.”

“He’s not my son either,” May reminded, “but you don’t have to be a parent to care.”

Tony stayed silent as May’s words sunk in. Somehow, he’d never realised quite  _ how much _ he’d come to care for Peter. Maybe it was the stories about the churro lady, or the ‘very old’ pop culture references, or the pure gentleness of his smile that had gotten to him, but Tony didn’t know what he’d do if something happened to the kid.

Padded footsteps could be heard down the hall. “May the smell of your cocoa could wake me from a coma and-” Peter faltered mid-step as he entered the living room and saw Tony sitting there. “Oh, hey, Mister Stark. I didn’t know you were still here.”

“Hi, kid.” Tony nodded to the seat across from him. “Do you want to come and talk? You were kinda out of it when I brought you home.”

“Uh, I think I’d rather go back to bed, actually.” Peter jerked a thumb over his should and started to slowly back away.

“Sit and I’ll make you cocoa of your own,” May, clearly knowing how to get to the kid’s heart, said.

Peter looked torn, glancing over his shoulder towards the safety of his room, and the sofa with the promise of sweet chocolatey goodness. Eventually, sulkily, he took the seat. “I’m sorry about the plane, Mister Stark, I didn’t mean for it to get destroyed. I just had to-”

“Whoa, whoa.” Tony held up his hands. “I’m not mad about the plane. I’m not mad at all, for that matter - don’t get me wrong, a heads up would be nice next time you’re about to give Happy a heart attack-” He took a breath. “I’m getting off track. Point is, I was just saying to May that I feel somewhat responsible for all this, for  _ you _ , and it’s time I step up as a mentor. The suit’s all yours, of course, I even have a nanotech one back at the facility. Swing by anytime you need advice or an upgrade or to report an illegal weapons trade. I’ll be there.”

Peter stared, gobsmacked, across the room at Tony. “I can have my suit back?”

“That is what I said, yes.”

“And you have a  _ nanotech _ one?”

“Do you need your ears checked, kid? Yeah, I have multiple suits, look who you’re talking to.”

Peter jumped to his feet. “Can I go and see it now?”

“Woah,” May cut in. “You were in a plane crash an hour ago, rest up for the night at least.”

“She’s right, kid. And one more stipulation: keep your aunt in the loop, she cares about you. We both do.” As soon as he said the words, Tony jerked back as if betrayed by his own mouth. He stood up quickly, avoiding Peter’s widening eyes. “I’d, uh, best head out. PR mess to clear up, and all that.” He beelined for the door, pausing with his hand on the handle when Peter spoke.

“Sorry about that.” He dropped his gaze. “I car- I mean, thanks for being my mentor… and the suits and stuff.”

Tony nodded once. “Get some sleep, kid. We’ll talk in the morning.” 

He left before he could say anything more.

** III. **

“This self-assembly system is insane, Mister Stark. I mean, I don’t know how you do it. Atomic layer deposition is the obvious choice, but that would take far too long for the suit to assemble.”

“Sometimes obvious is right,” Tony said with a shrug he hoped covered up the pride blooming in his chest. “I just devised a system of ALD that starts depositing the second layer of nanites before the first is complete, and so on until you have enough layers to kick some ass on the streets of New York.” 

Peter couldn’t keep a grin from his face as he ran his hands over the Iron Spider armour laid out on the workbench before him. He was supposed to be interning, but Tony gave him the last ten minutes off to play with his new suit.

“FRI,” Tony called, “give the kid a real-time atomic microscope screen, could you.”

A holographic screen appeared in Peter’s face. Tony had to suppress a laugh when the kid’s eyes widened beyond belief.

“Watch carefully. It’s fast, but you can make out the individual layers forming over one another.” Tony retracted and deployed the suit a few times to give Peter a good idea at how it worked.

“ _ Awesome! _ ” Peter breathed. “What else has it got?.”

“Parachute, Spider-Legs, neutral reactive interface, decent degree of shock absorption, nanosensors, your trademark web-shooters, the whole works.” Tony listed each off on his fingers.

“You had me at Spider-Legs.”

“All of that will have to wait, though. May’s expecting you home.”

“I don’t think my human-legs are working right now, Mister Stark. They don’t want me to leave this spot.” Peter was back to staring at the suit as if it would disappear the second he looked away. 

_ Given your history with giving and snatching away, do you blame him? _

“It’ll be here waiting for you to get back,” Tony assured.

Finally, Peter tore his gaze away. Turning his head first, eyes following a handful of seconds later. Tony almost wished he’d return to the slightly scary staring, the look in Peter’s eyes was a mixture of emotions that clawed at something deep in Tony’s stomach. “Thank you for all of this Mister Stark, really. But… why are you helping me? I destroyed Mister Delmar’s, blew up a ferry, crashed your plane full of priceless equipment. I don’t deserve any of this.”

Oh,  _ oh _ . That’s why the emotional cocktail tugged at Tony the way it had, it was the same sight he’d seen in his own reflection for months after the Accords situation. At least until Rhodey managed to convince him that maybe, possibly, it wasn’t  _ entirely _ on Tony’s shoulders alone.

“I’ve dropped Chitauri Leviathans on office buildings, evaporated an entire city, and broke up the one thing keeping this damn planet safe from another invasion. Kid, if anyone doesn’t deserve all this,” he gestured around at the fully equipped lab, in the state of the art facility in which he lived, “it’s me, no question. Not even close. You’re young, sure you’ve made a mistake or two, but that’s what being young is for. You don’t even want to know what I was up to at your age.”

“You don’t have to try and make me feel better, Mister Stark,” Peter sniffled, no longer looking at Tony or the suit.

“But I do, and not only because sadness looks all kinds of wrong on your face, because everything I just said is true. All that matters from here on out is that you do the right thing and never give up, you do that and everything else will work out.”

Peter was at a loss for words, but the tears that silently rolled down his cheeks said enough. “I, uh… I should get going, May will be waiting.” He headed for the door without meeting Tony’s eyes again.

“Should I expect you at the same time tomorrow, son?” Tony called after him. His words only registered in his ears when Peter faltered and froze, his shoulders around his ears and back still turned. Tony was glad the kid couldn’t see the shade of red his face was undoubtedly turning. “I mean-”

“I know what you mean.” Peter still didn’t look back, but his voice held a quiet tone that told Tony he truly did understand. “And yeah, see you tomorrow.” With that, Peter left.

Tony stared at the space where Peter had been, not sure he understood himself. It seemed like his mouth made decisions based on information his brain didn’t know yet, but as soon as the words got out there, it all clicked into place.  _ Son.  _

** IV. **

Of all the things Tony could have built after returning to earth, a lake house wasn’t even on his radar. But now, as he sat on the sofa in almost pitch black, Tony wished he could knock it down and start all over again. He’d spent months tinkering with every aspect, from the colour of the railing on the balcony, right down to rounding the corners of the kitchen counters to avoid the minor hassle of hitting a sharp edge.

In reality, anything would do. Anything to occupy his mind so he doesn’t have to think about Peter. About the fear in his voice.  _ I don’t feel so good _ . About the tears in his eyes.  _ Sir, please, I don’t wanna go. _ About the dreadful moment his iron-strong grip disappeared from his shoulder.  _ I’m sorry. _

He hadn’t faced looking at one of his suits since returning. He couldn’t. It only reminded him of the failure and the loss. Most people who survived Thanos seemed to have assumed Tony died after he went missing, his return lost among the atrocities happening across the world. Maybe that was for the best, maybe Tony could pretend he was dead, too. With Peter. 

The one thing Tony had done - had tried to do - was visit May and tell her in person. She deserved to hear it from him.  _ Peter deserved to be alive. _ But Pepper gently let him in on the news May hadn’t survived either.  _ At least she’s with Peter, they’re not alone. Where ever they are. _

Pepper. Tony’s rock, she always had been. An immovable force by his side, holding him up when his own legs were too weak, pushing him forward when he didn’t think he could go on. Without Pepper, Tony’s life would have crumbled years before Iron Man was a distant notion. She came and sat by his side, now, turning on a gentle table lamp before she rested her head on his shoulder and squeezed his arm.

“If you’re thinking about changing the kitchen sink again, you’d best stop right there.”

Tony tried to laugh at her joke, tried to smile at least, but his face didn’t want to comply. It was as if his laugh left alongside Peter, dust in the wind on some faraway planet.

Pepper tried again, this time changing her tact. “I know it’s hard, Tony. But we will have to face the world someday, I think the sooner the better. I’m not saying you have to stop grieving, just don’t let it consume you.”

“I’m scared.” Again, Tony’s mouth beating his brain to the truths, once he started though, he didn’t stop. “I’m scared to grieve because I don’t see how I can stop. I held him in my arms Pep, my hands, as he begged me to help, to protect him. And I was powerless, I sat there and watched him disappear.” Tony looked down at his hands as if they were something foreign to his body. “Sometimes I can still feel the- the dust, or ash... whatever it was. It’s like it clings to me, haunts me day and night.” 

Tony only stopped talking when he realised two tracks of tears were steadily making their way down his face. Pepper reached up a hand and cupped his cheek, forcing Tony to look at her.

“You were there for him when he needed you most, Tony. You held him and comforted him.”

“You don’t get it, Pep. Peter wasn’t just some random kid from Queens that I conscripted to Germany and took a liking to. He was  _ my son. _ ” Tony’s voice gave way to painful sobs.

Pepper held him tightly, waited for the sobs to die down a little. “I know. I saw the way you looked at him, heard how you spoke about him. Peter knew it, too.”

“I don’t know what to do.”

“We’ll figure it out together. Look at me, Tony.” She fixed him with a stare equal parts firm and loving. “You’re not alone, you never have been and you never will, not as long as I’m here. We’ll figure out a way to make Peter proud together.”

Tony nodded, knowing his voice would only fail him again. He buried his face into Pepper’s neck as he pulled her into a hug. The ghost a smile tugged at Tony’s lips.  _ We’re going to make you proud, son. _

** V. **

Tony couldn’t move. An overwhelming pain throughout his entire body threatened to pull him away into whatever it is that comes next. But he could go, not yet, there was something that had to be done first. So he fought against the pull with all of his dwindling strength.

Pepper’s hand on his cheek was the only thing grounding him to reality. She seemed to know it, too, as she looked into his eyes. “FRIDAY?”

“ _ Life signs critical.” _

Pepper’s facade cracked, her face crumpled as tears filled her eyes. But still, she smiled, she let Tony know it was okay.

Peter swung in, landing beside Pepper. “Mister Stark?” It only took a second for the hope on his face to melt into pain.

_ Sadness looks all kinds of wrong on your face. _

Peter knelt, squeezing Tony’s hand in his own. “You did it, Mister Stark. You did it. It worked, you won, Tony.” Tears fell over Peter’s cheeks, wiping them away was a futile task.

This was what Tony was holding on for, one last goodbye with Peter. With all of his remaining strength, Tony squeezed Peter’s hand in return. “M-My son.”

Peter smiled through his tears, the sight giving Tony one last ray of hope. “Thank you for everything you did for me. For showing me I deserve it, I’ll never forget that.”

If Tony could, he would have smiled back. He tried to convey all the words unsaid between them with his eyes, hoping that one day Peter would understand what he meant to him. Eventually, he pulled his vision to Pepper, she had one hand still on Tony’s cheek, the other on Peter’s shoulder.  _ Family. _

“It’s okay, Tony. We’ll be okay. You can rest now.”

_ They were going to be okay... _

** VI. **

Peter stood over the sink in his and Ned’s Venice hotel room, wringing out his shirt to rid it of canal water while Ned towelled his hair dry. Peter couldn’t hide how his hands shook, even though the fight had long passed and his adrenaline returned to normal. He caught Ned looking and squeezed the shirt tighter.

The elementals had been far more than unexpected, but when had things ever gone as expected for Peter. He just wanted to enjoy his trip, to forget about everything else for just a couple of weeks, but here he was, thrust right back into the middle of it all. Again.

As the all too familiar feeling of grief, the heart-wrenching pain that took up permanent residence in his chest, threatened to overwhelm Peter he threw the shirt from his unsteady hands and stumbled to the sofa. Head falling into his hands.

Ned was by his side in seconds, one arm around Peter’s shoulder, grounding him. 

“I kept thinking he was going to come.” The words left Peter’s mouth in a strangled mess as he desperately fought back tears. “I kept telling myself it would be okay because Tony would come and save the day like he always does- did. I-I don’t know how to do this without him. I can’t.”

“Peter, you already did. That water thing is gone, no one got hurt.”

“That was all that Mysterio guy, not me. I just… dropped a bell tower into the canal. I just- I just wish I could hear his voice again, Ned. I wish I could ask him how to do all of this, how he coped with the world looking for him for help. How to move on…”

Ned rubbed Peter’s shoulder, struggling to know how he could help. “No one expects you to be okay, you know. After everything you went through, it’s okay to not be okay. We’re all here for you to lean on.”

Peter lent into Ned as tears fell down his face. “I don’t know what I’d do if you weren’t here.”

“That’s okay, because I’m never leaving you. You feel like you have to carry the weight of the world alone but I’m right here beside you to share it.”

Peter’s reply was lost as he dissolved into sobs on Ned’s shoulder, but he couldn’t help but feel that maybe, somehow, things might start to look up. Especially with Ned by his side.

Tony’s words came back to Peter, his voice as loud and clear in his mind as if he was in the room. “ _ All that matters from here on out is that you do the right thing and never give up, you do that and everything else will work out.” _

**Author's Note:**

> Would be pretty awesome if you could check out some of my other fics.  
> Feel free to shout at me on Tumblr at thedumbestavenger. I don't know what I'm doing over there, but I don't really know what I'm doing here so... Maybe it'll be fun?  
> Thanks so much for reading!


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